The Irish standard., 1887-04-23
A MEETING IN SCOTLAND.
scotchmen Loudly Protest Against the
Proposed Coercion Bill Of the
Tory Government.
MICHAEL DAvITT DISCUSSES
The Causes that Led to the Dynamite
Outrages Which Took Place
in 1882 and 1888.

On the night of the oath ult., Mr..
Davitt addressed a crowded and en-
thusiastic meeting in King Street Hall,
Helensboro, place twenty miles from
Glasgow. The gathering was one al
most exclusively of Scotchmen, and the
reception accorded the distinguished
Irishman was of the heartiest descrip-
ton. The whole town seemed to join
in honoring him. The return train was
specially delayed for his convenience,
and the entire audience followed him to
the railway station and loudly cheered
him as he left the town. Throughout
the proceedings the feeling against
coercion was strong. Mr.. Malcolm
presided, and on the platform were ex-
Provost Bringen, James Young, A.
Williamson, John Williamson, Rev. w.
Howie Wylie, Presbyterian clergyman,
g. J. Kerr, v. McIndoe, j. Hunter, W.
Priestly, Thomas Brasb, ex-Bailie
Provan, Samuel Dryden, all Scotchmen,
and Captain Cunnian, Dublin Letters
Of apology for non attendance we're re-
celved from ex-l'rovosts Stuart and
Steven and Bailie Graham. The chair
man. in opening the proceedings, said
he regarded it as high honor TO pre-
side at a meeting to be addressed by q
man SO eminently distinguished as Mr..
Michael Davitt, a man whose character
won even from enemies the highest es~
TEEN. He was man whose whole life
had been nobly devoted to noble
cause, which happily now evoked wide,
general and generous sympathy. Such
a man required no intl odution to any
audience where the English language
is spoken, nor did that boundary limit
the places wherein his name was known
and honored. Mr.. Davitt, who on lis-
ing was received with prolonged cheers,
said he confessed he felt somewhat EN-
Darrassed at the kind of reception
which he had been accorded there that
night. He did expect to receive there
what had always been accorded when
in Scotland 4, fair and patient hearing
but he was not prepared for the too
generous way in which the chairman
had been pleased to speak OF him, or
the enthusiastic manner in which they
had accorded him welcome to that
town. When he recalled all their Tory
enemies and Liberal Unionist antago-
nists had said and written about US.
Parnell and his followers, be would not
be astonjshed if some timiG people came
there tonight expecting to find him
loaded down with dynamite, and carry
ing a number OF revo]vers round his
person. He was glad to fnd no such
fear pervaded at that meeting. and he
trusted he might be able to convince
them that the Irish leaders were not
the barbarians they were represented,
but men striving by fair. legitimate
and constitutional means to effect g
moral end by resorting only to moral
and justiiable methods. There were
only two possible remedies for Eng.
lands difficulty in Ireland-the remedy
Of force and coercion Or the remedy OF
Justice and Home Rule. He would ask
that highly intelligent audience one Or
two questions. Was coercion Or force
d just, reasonable Or possible remedy
for England's difficulty in Ireland, and
secondly he would ask Was it on the
broad ground of moral right to coerce
people into submission to admitted in
JUSTICE? For who could dare to deny
that Dublin Castle is unjust, and. that
the system of Irish landlordism is a
system of social repression? Was it in
keeping with the spirit of even the
British constitution to employ force in
order to enforce a people into tolera-
tion Of laws which the very Tory gov
ernment about to resort to force admit
to be unjust laws by the proposals
which they promise to bring forward
for the benefit Of the people whom they
are about to co rec. Apart from the
injustice Of coercion let him ask this
additional question: What chance was
there of making that additional coer-
cion act accomplish that which eighty
had completely failed to
accomplish, which, to use betting Ian
guage, he would say the betting was 81
to the next coercion act would be a
futile and disastrous one? What had
coercion actually accomplished for
England III Ireland2 1t had inhamed
the excited passions engendered by the
conflict on the Anglo-Irlsh question,
and embittered the feeling of disaffec-
tion and led to the shedding of blood
by bringing about conflicts between an
unarned people and an armed police,
and increasing the number of political
in Ireland. Besides it added
enormously to the burden of taxation,